Reducing High-Risk Drinking Among Student-Athletes: The Effects of a Targeted Athlete-Specific Brief Intervention.

OBJECTIVE: This study examined the effects of a single-session motivational interviewing-based in-person brief alcohol intervention that contained student-athlete-specific personalized drinking feedback. PARTICIPANTS: Participants were 170 National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I student-athletes meeting screening criteria for heavy episodic drinking. METHODS: Baseline assessments of alcohol use frequency and quantity, norm perceptions of peers' alcohol use, experiences of negative consequences, and use of protective behaviors were administered to student-athletes prior to a 1-session brief intervention containing personalized feedback highlighting the relationship between alcohol use and athletic performance. Follow-up assessment was conducted 3 months post intervention. RESULTS: Student-athletes participating in the athlete-specific brief intervention showed significant reductions in their alcohol use and alcohol-related negative consequences, increases in use of protective behavioral strategies, and corrections in norm misperceptions at 3 months post intervention relative to a no-treatment comparison group. CONCLUSIONS: Student-athlete-specific brief alcohol interventions show promise in addressing high-risk drinking, reducing associated harms, and supporting health.

Assessing the effectiveness of peer-facilitated interventions addressing high-risk drinking among judicially mandated college students.

OBJECTIVE: This study examined the effectiveness of three peer-facilitated brief alcohol interventions-small group motivational interviewing, motivationally enhanced peer theater, and an interactive alcohol-education program-with students engaging in high-risk drinking who were referred for alcohol policy violations. METHOD: Undergraduate students referred for alcohol policy violations (N = 695) at a large northeastern public university were randomized to one of the three conditions. Six-month follow-up data were collected on drinking frequency and quantity, negative consequences, use of protective behaviors, and perceptions of peers' drinking norms. RESULTS: There were no statistically significant overall pre-post effects or treatment effects. However, exploratory analyses indicated that decreases in perceived norms and increases in use of protective behavioral strategies were associated with reductions in alcohol use and alcohol-related problems at follow-up (p < .01). CONCLUSIONS: The presence of nonsignificant pre-post or main effects is, in part, consistent with recent research indicating that sanctioned college students may immediately reduce drinking in response to citation and that brief interventions may not contribute to additional behavioral change. The presence of statistically significant correlations between alcohol use and related problems with corrections in norms misperceptions and increased use of protective behaviors at the individual level holds promise for both research and practice. The integration of elements addressing social norms and use of protective behaviors within brief cognitive-behavioral intervention protocols delivered by trained peer facilitators warrants further study using randomized clinical trials.